Vapour Trail
by lovable hate
Summary: Spencer and Toby are leading an idylic life together raising their young daughter. However, a new threat means the family have to go on the run together. Will they, and their relationship, survive? Title from the Ride song of the same name. SPOBY
1. Chapter 1

**Hey guys! I'm biting the bullet and attempting a multi-chapter PLL fic! I got some good feedback on my oneshot, and although I guess this could be considered a sequel to it, they don't directly link. A few little things to get out the way first:**

 **1)** **The fic doesn't quite fit in with the time jump. Basically the time jump in the show is 5 years, and I'm making this six. Spencer is 24 and Toby is 25. Sorry Marlene. But hey, the canon PLL timeline makes no sense either, so maybe it doesn't matter.**

 **2)** **This fic will eventually link to the post time jump clip we saw at the end of the latest episode. AND it will offer an alternative explanation of who –A really is, because I know a whole bunch of us weren't satisfied with the CeCe/ Charlotte story.**

 **3)** **I'm going to try so hard to update this regularly, but on Thursday I start the UK version of senior year and am currently in the process of applying to medical schools which is all very stressful.**

 **Thanks, and please write me a little review, I find them very motivational. I of course own no part of PLL.**

Toby had never had any kind of consistency growing up. His home life was a mess, long before his mother's illness and extending way beyond her death. He'd wake up every day not knowing what mood his father would be in, how Jenna would chose to torment him or what the jerks at school would say to him. Falling in love with a girl who was being stalked by a psycho meant he was never sure if Spencer would finish the day unscathed or even alive. Because of all this, the perfectly boring weekend routine he now had was nothing short of a blessing.

At 7.30am, he'd feel himself stirring from his slumber to the feel of Spencer Hastings planting gentle kisses behind his ear and down his neck to his collar bone. He'd groan the same groan, and half-heartedly bat her away before forcing open his eyes. Seeing her in the morning, her hair tousled with sleep and her face lit and shadowed with the strips of light peeking through was honestly his favourite part of the day, and this morning was no different. She was so beautiful, and he was so lucky to have her.

"What time did you get home last night babe?" she murmured softly into his ear. He propped himself up on his elbow, turning to face her and planting a kiss on her forehead.

"Uh around quarter to one? I came in and found you asleep and fully clothed on top of the covers," he chuckled. She glanced down at her outfit, she was wearing nothing but one of his t shirts. He'd obviously changed her whilst she slept.

"I wanted to wait up for you," she replied, sliding out from beneath the covers and standing up. Toby spun himself round so he was sat on the edge of the bed and encircled her waist into his arms. "How did the meeting go anyway?"

"Slowly," he sighed, rubbing his hands up and down her sides. "The coffee shop closed early so we ended up at Luke's apartment, working around his three, noisy housemates." Both Spencer and Toby were working part time. After graduating college in three years, where she majored in philosophy and politics, Spencer got a job writing for an independent newspaper about the world issues that weren't featured on the mainstream news sources. It suited her down to the ground. Toby had long abandoned the force and was working towards founding an architects business with his work buddy Luke. Having to juggle his business with shifts on a building site meant meetings at unsociable hours. However, it was a sacrifice he was willing to make if it meant getting them out of the tiny New York apartment they currently inhabited.

"Well, while I was waiting for you I finished my article on mass surveillance by governments in developed countries," she responded chirpily. "You know the one I was struggling with? If you could proofread it for me quickly I can send it to the editor this morning." Toby leant forwards, kissing her softly on the lips. She relaxed into the caress, her hands combing through his hair.

"I don't think he expects you to do work stuff on a Saturday, Spence," he muttered between kisses. He felt her pout against his lips, and continued speaking before she could protest. "Anyway I can think of lots of fun things to do that don't involve spellcheck." His hands slipped under her shirt. She smirked coyly.

"Oh you can, can you?"

"Mommy? You wake Daddy up yet?" Spencer pulled from Toby's embrace, and smiled at the small girl framed in the bedroom doorway. Adrianne Marion Cavanaugh had just had her third birthday and was already showing signs of her mother's fierce intelligence. Whilst slight for her age, her vocabulary had developed at a faster pace than most children. Her pale face was framed by brown, curly hair and pierced with her father's distinctive blue eyes.

"Well his eyes are open," she replied musingly. "I'm not sure if he's quite in the land of the living yet though." Toby stood up, stretching theatrically before scooping his daughter into his arms.

"Morning kiss?" he asked teasingly. Adrianne giggled pleasingly, pecking his cheek and grabbing hold of his ear with her small fist.

"Morning food?" she replied, mimicking his tone. Spencer laughed, crossing over to her partner and daughter and leaning blissfully into Toby's spare arm. After their relationship withstood the challenges of college, both parties knew they were in this for life and children were definitely on the card at some point in the near future. However, completing her final year of college whilst pregnant and attending her graduation ceremony with an 8 month baby bump beneath her gown certainly wasn't part of the plan. Now, looking at Toby holding their daughter to his hip filled her with such joy; she really wouldn't change any of it. Tearing herself from her thoughts, Spencer addressed her daughter.

"Well Ady, today's Saturday so I thought we could make some pancakes for breakfast? And while Mommy's doing that you and Daddy can skype Auntie Emily on the tablet and you can show her the drawing you did of her and her swim team?" The toddler nodded enthusiastically, clapping her hands together.

"When do we see Auntie Emily and Auntie Aria next?"

"Really really soon because Auntie Hanna's wedding is in ten days and everybody is going to be there!" Toby answered for her and Spencer began busying around the kitchen. Hanna and Caleb had been engaged for nearly three years now, and Spencer could hardly believe the couple had finally managed to pick and date and stick with it. As the only other member of the high school group that lived in New York, the girls saw each other a lot more than they saw Emily and Aria who were living in Philadelphia and Savannah respectively.

"Did you want to call Emily Tobes?" Spencer reminded him. "Ady run and get your picture, she's going to love it so much!"

"It says you've got an incoming call Spence, do you want me to answer it?" Toby called to her as their daughter skipped to her bedroom to fetch her masterpiece. Licking a splodge of pancake mix from her thumb, Spencer nodded.

"Go for it, it's probably Em. I told her Adrianne wanted to show her the picture." Toby tapped the 'answer call' icon, and froze mid step at the face that filled up the screen of the iPad. "What, who is-"

"Spencer." Her words stuck in her throat as she immediately recognised the voice emanating from the device. Snatching it from Toby, she paced over to the other side of the small kitchen and looked the girl in the eye.

"Alison?" Spencer couldn't remember the last contact she had with her former leader. After completing high school, Alison had embarked on what she called a 'year of self-discovery' which had quickly grown into five. The girls received an occasional postcard from various locations, signed only with Ali's signature and a bundle of kisses. Adrianne didn't even know she existed. The DiLaurentis girl looked very much the same as when Spencer had last seen her, although her hair was slightly dishevelled and her face smudged with dirt.

"Spence, listen to me. Don't say anything- just listen to me, we haven't got time." Spencer ignored her instructions.

"Ali what is it? Are you in trouble?"

"Spencer you have to run. You have to take Toby and your daughter and run. There's somebody after you. Jason had something they want and they think you've got it." One look at the blonde assured Spencer she was telling the truth. Her voice was tinged with pained desperation, her eyes were staring intensely into Spencer begging her to take her words seriously.

"I have a three year old Ali, I can't just up sticks and disappear…"

"They tried to kill me Spence! I barely managed to escape with my life!" Alison's voice rose shrilly. Toby was beside her in an instant, a reassuring hand resting on her shoulder. "They won't care you have a child, they just want whatever Jason had. This is bigger than last time, I can tell. Bigger than texts from my mentally ill sister and some shady small town cop. It's serious."

"Mommy I can't find my… I smell burning!" Spencer tore her eyes away from her friend, and swore under her breath at the blackening mess in the frying pan.

"Silly Mommy," she stammered, grabbing the pan off the stove and shoving it in the sink with shaking hands. "I was just…Toby can you…" He nodded, ushering their daughter back into the bedroom.

"I'm sorry Spencer, I'm so sorry." Tears were making tracks down Ali's cheeks now, and she scrubbed at them angrily with the back of her hand. "But they're coming for you, really soon. And you need to disappear." Spencer felt like screaming in frustration.

"Ali who's they?"

"Spencer!" Toby tore into the kitchen, his face screwed up in fear and panic. "There's a group of black hoodies outside. They're trying to get into the building." Terror fluttered through Spencer's body, her mouth opened wordlessly. Alison's lip quivered, and her voice dropped to a low murmur.

"That's them Spencer. You have to get out."


	2. Chapter 2

**Thanks for the people that left reviews for the previous chapter! Please keep them coming! Just so you know, italics= flashback.**

~4 years previous~

 _"It's so weird," Alison sighed, sinking down onto the double bed in the room that used to be hers. "I promised myself I'd never come back into this house. Nothing good ever happened while we lived here and after I found out about my Dad…" her voice trailed off. Spencer took her friend's hand in hers and squeezed it gently._

 _"We don't have to stay long," she promised. "We can leave right now if you want."_

 _"No." Ali shook her head defiantly, picking up the cardboard box and opening it. "Dad will chuck all this stuff out otherwise." Picking up a photograph of Jason holding a baby and grinning toothily at the camera, her face crumpled and she collapsed into Spencer's waiting embrace. Sobs wracking through her body, the blonde fought to steady her voice. "It's not fair. How come the only family I have left is_ him _." The venomous edge in her voice told Spencer she was talking about her father._

 _Jason had died from the injuries sustained in a car crash ten days ago. It wasn't his fault; the driver responsible for the collision had been staring at his phone and failed to stop at the lights. That was the part Spencer found most painful. After battling and beating addiction, surviving a falling elevator, and making it through the loss of his sister and mother, he had been killed by an act of carelessness. Ali was right. It wasn't fair._

 _There were no words that could comfort her grieving friend. Instead, the rested her chin gently on the girl's head, rocking her peacefully and letting her cry all the tears she had been holding in. Ali had always sucked at sharing her true emotions. After about twenty minutes, the sobs subsided, and Spencer tentatively released her from her arms._

 _"You should have some of this stuff you know," Ali sniffed, rubbing at the mascara under her eyes. "He was your brother too." Spencer shrugged, peering into the box. Inside was a tangle of disjointed childhood memories. A plastic trophy from middle school, a signed school shirt, a baseball cap. She reached inside the box, gently rummaging through the items hoping to find something that would remind her friend of a fond memory. Her fingers connected with something smooth and cool. It was a disc, inside a case which was labelled "N.A.T". Without thinking, Spencer picked up the disc and shoved it inside her bag. It would only upset Alison to remind her of her brother's less than honourable past._

"Spencer why can't we just call 911! They'd be over here straight away!" Toby was torn, hovering at the window as he tried to decide whether to help his girlfriend with what she was doing or keep an eye on the group outside. His police instincts kicking in, he immediately noticed the gun concealed in one of the figures pocket.

"Ali told me not to," Spencer replied stubbornly. "She said it would get us in more trouble and if we're in more trouble that means Adrianne is too." She had grabbed her largest handbag and was stuffing it with objects she thought might be useful. Her laptop, a jumper, a colouring book, her purse. Some food. A blanket.

"And we're right back to doing exactly what Alison tells us to," Toby muttered darkly, before he snapped straight back into action mode. "Spencer we need to hurry up they've got inside." The lift in their building had been broken for years, but they were only on the third floor. Assuming the gang knew which door was theirs, they had mere minutes to escape. Spencer hesitated, her eyes flickering back to the desk.

"Just a second." _Jason had something they want_. Surely they couldn't be referring to the NAT videos? Spencer was sure her and her friends had combed through most of them, and nothing on them suggested anything incriminating to anybody except –A. And –A had been caught; the game was over. Pushing her rationale to the back of her mind, she tore furiously through the desk, locating the disc behind a bunch of old CDs nobody listened to anymore. Stashing it away in the bag, she zipped it up and ran into the bedroom where her daughter was huddled beneath the covers. Spencer kneeled beside the bed, cupping Adrianne's face in her hands.

"Hey Ady, remember when we went to Nana and Grandads and we all played hide and seek together? We're playing it again. And it's really important we win because if we do, I'll buy us a humongous cake and you get to eat it all, okay?" Adrianne giggled.

"A chocolate one?"

"The biggest chocolate one." Spencer could hear footsteps at the far end of the corridor, her heart jumped into her throat. She scooped Ady into her arms, Toby grabbed the bag from her and the three of them rushed towards the large window looking out onto to the fire escape. Snatching Adrianne from her, Toby pushed Spencer through first before handing her back her daughter.

"Toby!" Spencer could hear fists pounding at the door now, raised voices she didn't recognise. Ignoring the noise behind him, he shouldered the bag and slipped through the window, slamming it behind him.

"Go!" he yelled. Gripping Adrianne tightly to the side of her body away from the drop, Spencer hurried down the fire escape and onto the street. She froze, realising too late that she had no idea where to run to.

"Let's go to the main road, and hail a cab. We'll figure something out." As the family began to half walk half run away from their residential side street, an ear splitting crash echoed down the road and Spencer felt a brief flash of scorching heat against her cheek. Whipping her head around, she felt her knees buckle slightly beneath her as she found the source of the noise.

Flames were leaping out the windows of their apartment, accompanied by curls of choking black smoke twisting their way up into the sky. Clasping tighter to her daughter, whose face was buried in her mother's coat, Spencer fought the compulsion to tear back into their home and salvage every possession they had. Everything they'd worked for. She remembered how proud she and Toby had been when they got the keys to the apartment. Adrianne had been raised there. It had hosted her first bath, her first step, her first word. She felt Toby tugging at her arm, shouting at her to move but she didn't register the words. It was only the sight of a figure in a black hoodie calmly jumping from the fire escape and looking directly at the family that jolted her into action.

They ran. Toby shouted frantically for a cab which screeched to a halt beside them. Practically falling into the back of the taxi, Spencer craned her neck to look out the window. The hooded stranger was standing in the middle of the road behind them, probably taking a note of the registration number.

"Mommy?" The tremor on Adrianne's voice told of her fear. "Did our home burn?"

"Y-yes baby. But it's all good because you and me and Daddy are all fine, and I have your teddy nice and safe in my bag!" Keeping the light tone to her voice was emotionally draining. She was stroking Adrianne's hair almost obsessively, the functioning part of her brain wondering whether it served to soothe her child or comfort herself.

"Who's that coming up behind us then? Ex-boyfriend or something?" the cab driver asked.

"Yeah or something," Toby responded drily. "Can you speed up a little please?"

"Where are we going?" she asked. She had been mentally absent from Toby's conversation with the man.

"To get the truck from the storage unit. I figured if we're really doing this we can't do it via taxi." He reached for his loves hand, planting small kisses on each of her knuckles before encasing it comfortingly in both of his. "Why would they do that Spencer," his voice dropped to a murmur. "We could have been in there. Adrianne could have been in there." Starting at the sound of her name, the couple's daughter moved closer to Spencer, cuddling into her stomach.

"Ali said it was serious," was her flat response. She could feel the lump rising in her throat, and tears burning at the corners of her eyes, but she supressed both. This wasn't the time to cry.

"I thought last time was serious. I thought all we had to worry about now was taxes, and chores and not screwing up this one too much." Spencer chuckled mirthlessly.

"We've had six years of peace. And going by our track record, I think it's a miracle we made it so far." Spencer felt her phone buzz with a text, and she automatically looked down to check it. Toby watched the colour drain from her face, and her teeth bite at the inside of her lip- a sure sign she was scared.

"Spence?" She held up her cell in response. Attached to the message was a photo of a gloved hand holding a snap of the family taken at the Hastings property in Rosewood. Toby was holding Adrianne high in the air, the girl was waving her hands in delight. Spencer was stood with her arms wrapped around her boyfriend's chest, her face a picture of pure delight. The edges of the photo were curled and blackened with fire damage.

 _How far would you run to protect your family? –A_

 **Hope you liked it- please review!**


	3. Chapter 3

**We find out a few things in this chapter! Please read and review, thanks for everybody that has so far.**

Spencer sighed as she ended the call, tossing her cell phone onto the bed of the tiny motel room. Toby, who was playing with Adrianne at the foot of the bed, looked up at her.

"What did Aria say?"

"Well she's freaking out," Spencer replied shortly, flopping backwards onto the mattress. "Talking about driving all the way back up to New York, or telling us to come and stay with her in Savannah. Both would put her right in the line of fire, of course."

"But at least all the girls know to stay safe now, right?" Toby crawled up the bed and wrapped him arms around her, planting a kiss onto her forehead. She leant into him, burying her face into his shoulder.

"But how do we keep _our_ girl safe?" she whispered, her voice cracking. They'd driven Toby's truck nearly a whole days drive out of New York City before they'd reached what they hoped was a well-hidden motel. Adrianne, who was usually bouncing off the wall after sitting still for half an hour, had been worryingly subdued all day. Spencer was scared that even if the three of them managed to escape this mystery physically unscathed, that the psychological effect would continue to haunt her daughter.

Toby shifted slightly, his hands rubbing up and down her back reassuringly. "We find out what's going on," he murmured softly into her ear, planting a kiss on her ear lobe. "And we stop it."

"I'm so sorry," she muttered. "I'm so sorry for getting you into all this Ali crap again."

"I'd rather it this way than you cutting me out like last time. You don't need to go through anything on your own anymore, babe." Spencer smiled, stretching up to kiss him sweetly.

"I don't deserve you, Toby Cavanaugh." Shaking his head, he brushed his fingers lazily along her side, revelling at the curve of her hip. After a few moments of peaceful silence, Spencer spoke. "Ali said that Jason had something. Something either incriminating or precious to 'them', I guess. That's why they're after us. And when Jason died, I took some NAT videos from his room." Toby shifted himself so he was opposite her, his face so close to hers he could count her freckles if he wished.

"So they've got them now," he murmured softly, toying with a strand of her hair. "Either that or they burnt." She shook her head.

"I've got it in my bag." She leant forward, extracting first her laptop, then the disc and finally a can of red bull. Cracking it open and taking a generous swig, she sat up straight in the bed, letting the machine whir awake. "I'm gonna comb through it tonight. If I can figure out why these people don't want anybody to see the footage, then maybe I can figure out who 'these people' are."

"And when do you plan on sleeping?" he quipped, a hint of concern behind his light tone.

"In a double bed, in New York when I'm not on the run with my three year old," she replied levelly. "Can you try and get Ady to sleep?"

"I don't want to sleep," Adrianne piped up, suddenly appearing on the bed and crawling between her parents. "What if the room catches fire and I'm asleep and we can't run?" Spencer hesitated, trying to form the correct, reassuring response. Instead, Toby was the one that gathered their daughter into his arms.

"There won't be any fire tonight, darling. And anyway, Mommy is insisting on staying awake all night so she'll always know when it's time to run."

"I packed your pyjamas, Adrianne. So you and Dad can get all ready for bed while I do work." Crossing over to the other side of the tiny motel room and sitting with her back against the door. Slipping the disc into the drive and plugging her headphones in, Spencer pressed the play button. Her heart sank at the time stamp of over seven hours.

Half an hour later and she was yet to watch anything she hadn't before. After enduring the painful recording of Jenna and Toby, she'd been treated to endless shots of her and her friends trying on clothes, sitting in the brew and sneaking out of school at lunch. During this time, she'd been half aware on Toby changing Ady into her pyjamas and tucking her into the bed. He was now reciting a bedtime story to her, and the girl was gently dropping into sleep.

Spencer jumped at the sound of her own voice blaring in her ears. It was a video, obviously shot at a distance but zoomed in close into her own bedroom window. "I've never had a safe place to land. But now I feel like I do. So I want you to stay." She sighed, rubbing her eyes. Hadn't the NAT club dissolved by the time Toby and her had started dating? In all the time the girls had spent trawling through these clips they'd never come across anything as recent. So did that mean Ian or Garret had been filming her moments before the former's death? Or was it somebody else?

The next two and a half hours of film was composed of various snippets of Rosewood residents seemingly going about their day to day life. It seemed to be in fairly chronological order, with a heavy focus on Spencer and her friends. She grew more and more uneasy as the memories she was reliving extended way beyond both Ian and Garrett's deaths. A further three energy drinks was the only way she managed to keep awake. Both Toby and Adrianne were asleep now, their soft sighs making the bed seem ever the more appealing.

"This conversation is over, Melissa." The camera showed a wide shot of the DiLaurentis yard. It was twilight, and the two figures marching across the grass were unmistakably Jessica DiLaurentis and Melissa Hastings.

"Except, no its not because you're still going to the police accusing my sister of killing Alison when we both know that to be shit!" the older Hastings replied angrily. Alison's mother stopped and spun round.

"Are you sure? Because I have the Rosewood PD wrapped around my little finger. They won't take much convincing and soon, your baby sister will be staring at the inside of a police cell for 25 years to life." Spencer could feel her heart in her mouth as she watched the exchange becoming angrier and angrier. As Jessica turned to leave, Melissa grabbed her arm, spinning her around. The older woman smirked a little breathlessly. "I always told Alison never to turn her back on a Hastings. I guess she didn't listen."

"Cut the crap, Mrs D. Alison's alive and you know it." With an inhumane screech, Jessica flew at the older Hastings daughter, pushing her onto the floor and pouncing on her. Melissa screamed, struggling beneath Jessica before managing to flip her over so she was flat on her back in the dirt. In an instant, Melissa had the advantage, kneeling on the blonde's chest and pressing her fingers against the woman's throat. Spencer felt tears prickling at her eyes as she watched her former best friend's mother struggle, her legs twitching, before falling still.

Melissa stepped off the body shakily. "Mrs DiLaurentis?" She knelt down, touching the woman's shoulder. "Jessica? Oh God…" The next thing she knew, the shot changed and Spencer was watching Aria making out with Ezra Fitz in the back of a car.

She paused the video with her trembling hands, and leaned against the door as hot tears burned down her cheeks. Her sister was a murderer, and this time it wasn't an accident. Did that mean Melissa had been amongst the group that had set fire to their home and had attacked Alison? Was it her idea to target her family? She suddenly felt the weight of her exhaustion bearing down of her, and she slipped out of her clothes and into Toby's discarded shirt, crawling into bed with her daughter and partner. "I'm so sorry, baby," she whispered into her sleeping daughter's ear. She knew Toby would want her to wake him up and explain everything she'd found out, but all she could do was sleep. She didn't have it in her to reveal what she'd just witnessed, to admit to him how naïve she continued to be about what her sister was really like.

Instead, she rolled over and closed her eyes.

III

Toby awoke to streams of watery sunlight bleeding through the broken blinds of the motel room. Stretching his arm out, he could feel the familiar shape of Spencer slumbering peacefully beside him, and for a moment could imagine they were back at home before this had all begun. Any moment now, she'd be planting kisses along his neck and Adrianne would come running into the room to wake them up.

Adrianne.

Toby's eyes snapped open, a growing feeling of dread crawling across his skin. "Ady?" The three year old was no longer lying between her parents, and didn't seem to be anywhere in the room. Tearing into the small en suite bathroom and finding it empty, he began throwing open the doors of the cupboard in desperation. "Adrianne!" Spencer was stirring awake now.

"W-what's going on?"

"She's gone Spencer!" he was panicking now, his breaths short and shallow. He threw open the front door and ran out onto the scrub of grass. "Adrianne!" Spencer flew past him and began hammering on the doors of the row of rooms, screaming for her daughter. There was nobody around- that was the very reason they'd chosen this place to spend the night. Now, however it seemed a curse as there was nobody to help them. Her hands throbbed in protest as she smashed them against the hard wood of the doors, but she ignored the pain. She spun to face Toby, her hair whipping against her cheek.

"What the hell do we do?"

 **Ooh cliffhanger! Please review if you enjoyed it** **J**


	4. Chapter 4

**Thanks for the reviews! Sorry this one is slightly shorter.**

 _3 years earlier:_

 _"You were incredible," Toby stated, for what seemed like the hundredth time that day. Propped up by the stack of crisp, hospital pillows, Spencer reached out for his hand and pulled him down into the chair by her bed._

 _"As you've mentioned," she replied teasingly, a smile crossing across her tired face. "And so were you." He shook his head, lifting her hand to press a kiss into her palm. Baby girl Cavanaugh-Hastings had been born at 23.15 after a trying 11 hours of active labour and weighed just shy of 7 pounds. Although Spencer had been reluctant to let her go initially, the baby was now with a midwife being bathed and looked after properly._

 _"Any revelations on the name yet?" he asked softly, twisting a strand of her hair around his finger._

 _"I was thinking something French," she suggested tentatively. "You know because I love the culture, and you liked Les Mis when I made you watch it, and it sort of… bought us together?"_

 _"That sounds perfect," Toby agreed. "Not anything out of Les Mis though, I don't want to name our first daughter after a dead character." Spencer chuckled, running her thumb across Toby's knuckles lovingly._

 _"I can't believe it," she chuckled. "I can't believe she's real, she's here."_

 _"At last," Toby said. "I can't wait to take her home so we can put her in the cot, and she can meet Hanna and Caleb…" They fell silent, lost in thoughts of the blissful future stretching before them._

 _"Baby girl Cavanaugh?" A midwife walked into the room, a small bundle tucked into her arms. Toby jumped up, taking the baby from the woman._

 _"It's Cavanaugh-Hastings," he corrected, kneeling beside the bed and handing Spencer her daughter. Spencer felt a gush of love flood up her body as she gazed at the sleeping baby. She concentrated hard on her tiny features, trying to assign a name to her glowing skin, long eyelashes and button nose._

 _"Adrianne," Toby said simply. He looked up at her the gauge her reaction. "You think she looks like an Adrianne?" She nodded, tears welling in the corners of her eyes._

 _"Adrianne Marion," she whispered. They were both crying now, crying and smiling. Toby leant across and kissed her._

 _"I love you Spencer Hastings," he told her sincerely. "And I love you too, Adrianne."_

"Adrianne!" Spencer's voice was hoarse from screaming her daughter's name. Slamming her palms dejectedly against the door of the motel room and leaning forward, Spencer felt a sob rack through her body. Toby was beside her in an instant, pulling her into his arms.

"We'll find her Spence," he promised. She shook her head, panic coursing through her body.

"M-Melissa k-killed Ali's M-Mom," she stammered. Her breaths were coming in heaves, and Toby gripped hold of her waist, trying to ground her. "And now she's after us for J-Jason's videos and now she probably has Ady…"

"You think Melissa is the one who's after us?" he asked levelly. She found herself unable to answer, her throat choked with fear for her daughter. "Because if it is her, then she wouldn't hurt Adrianne for anybody babe. She loves her."

"If she loved her she wouldn't have taken her from us, Tobes. She wouldn't have helped to burn down our apartment." She could feel herself calming a little in his arms, the rational side of her brain that was usually so prominent beginning to emerge. "But I mean you're right. I guess we know what happens now. Adrianne for the tapes."

"And maybe that's okay," he dared to suggest. "Maybe… maybe it was stupid to just listen to Alison and run away like that. What's so bad about going to the police, they'd take one look at the recording and put your sister in jail. How would that hurt Ali?" Spencer shrugged, her mind working at a million miles per hour. Adrianne was obviously her priority, and there weren't very many people she would think twice about throwing under the bus to save her daughter. And she hadn't seen Melissa for a while now, the sisters had never been close and the added distance hadn't helped their relationship. But could she do it? Could she turn her sister into the cops without a second thought?

"She was doing it to protect me," she whispered. "She thought I was the one who killed Alison, everybody seems to at some point."

"I never did," Toby released Spencer from the hug and they both sank onto the floor. "Spencer, Melissa spent her life trying to make your look bad in comparison to her. She never tried to protect you until it looked like the Hastings family name was under threat. And she killed somebody in order to do it. You owe her nothing." Spencer scrubbed her eyes with the back of her hands, and Toby caught her wrist gently. "You've hurt your hand, babe." She glanced at it briefly, barely taking in the blackening bruises around her knuckles from slamming them against the doors.

"It doesn't matter." She stood up, running back towards their motel room and disappearing inside it. "I'm calling Melissa and getting her back and the video is just gonna have to…" her voice trailed. Toby glanced up at the door, concerned.

"Spencer?" She reappeared in the doorway, holding her phone up.

"Toby, look." He grabbed the phone from her, scanning over the message. There was a photo of a tiny hand gripped in a larger, gloved one attached. Adrianne.

"Come quickly or we'll drive your baby away," he breathed. He looked up at his girlfriend, wide eyed. "Drive, Spencer. _Baby_."

"Oh my God she's in the truck." And with that the couple were sprinting across the scrub of grass and towards the carpark. Toby could feel his breaths scraping up and down his throat, his limbs screaming at him to stop. But he ignored it all, focusing on Adrianne. He had to get to her. He was aware of Spencer a few steps behind him, but he couldn't bring himself to slow down for her. The truck was coming into sight now, shifting from a pale blur on the horizon to a more defined shape.

"Adrianne!" he yelled. Was he imagining it or was there a tiny voice coming from the van. He skidded to a halt beside the vehicle and tore the door open. "Adrianne?"

"Daddy?" The boot. She was in the boot. He wrenched it open, and the three year old clambered into his arm. Stumbling backwards, he clutched hold of the girl, stroking her hair gently, his chest rising and falling as the adrenaline slowly left his body. He stroked her hair, reassuring himself she was real. "Daddy found me!" He nodded, gripping hold of her desperately.

"Are you okay? Are you hurt at all?"

"I have pins and needles in my leg," she pouted. Toby sighed, squeezing her closer in relief.

"Adrianne you have to tell me what happened."

"The person said hide."

"What person, Ady. Was it a man or a woman? Do you know their name?"

"It had a man voice." Toby felt his heart go cold. It was one thing to think that Melissa had taken Adrianne in the middle of the night, but the thought of some strange man creeping into their room and snatching her from the bed disgusted him.

"Ady," he uttered, sitting her down on the edge of the boot and crouching before her. "This isn't your fault and me and Mommy aren't mad. But we were really, really scared when we woke up and you weren't there anymore. So if somebody ever comes into the room and says you have to come with them, you wake me and Mom up straight away. Even if you have to scream really loud."

"Wake Mommy and Daddy up," she repeated thoughtfully. "Where's Mommy?"

 _~MOMENTS EARLIER~_

Spencer almost collapsed with relief at the sight of Toby pulling their daughter out of the boot of the truck. She stumbled to a halt, watching at he hugged the girl tightly, her panicked breaths slowly returning to normal. It was okay. It was all going to be…

Spencer felt an unfamiliar hand clap tightly over her mouth. She screamed, the noise muffled by the strangers grip, and scratched desperately against the leather glove. Her eyes widened as the other arm snaked tightly across her neck and pushed down deliberately. Spencer's bare feet scrabbled against the dirt of the ground, she could feel herself becoming more and more light headed. _Toby._ She could see him in the distance, a blur of colour against the backdrop of the large van. _"Look over here,"_ she silently begged. Her sight was spotted, a sort of redness bleeding across her vision from the corner of her eyes outwards. Fighting against the burning of her lungs but to no avail, Spencer felt herself go limp in the strangers grasp.

"Ach," she choked, as her eyes slid shut and the blackness encompassed her.


	5. Chapter 5

**Hey guys! I don't know what happened, I just sat down and wrote this out super fast- I think it's a method of procrastinating school work to be honest. Anyway, thanks for the reviews, I really love getting feedback.**

 **I said at the beginning of the first chapter that this story would link directly to the clip of the time jump we saw in the season finale. Wellll it won't anymore because I decided to change direction completely and didn't want to be limited by canon. Hope you still enjoy it!**

"You are definitely more southern than the last time we spoke," Hanna Marin stated, passing a steaming mug of coffee to her tiny friend. Aria shrugged, taking a tentative sip before placing the cup down on the table.

"Living in Savannah for five years does that to you, Han. Any update from Emily?"

"As of forty minutes ago she was on her way," the blonde replied, sinking into the sofa. "Not that we know what to do when she gets here."

"The only one of us who would have any sort of plan would be Spencer," Aria said glumly. "We shouldn't be worried that she's not contacted us right? I mean, she's probably trying to keep a low profile."

"Yeah…" Hanna's voice trailed unconvincingly, her fingers toying subconsciously on the tassels of the throw. "I wish she'd told us where she was."

"She thought you'd follow her there." Caleb appeared in the doorway, laden with grocery bags. Hanna rolled her eyes.

"Well obviously we would. I'm not leaving her in the middle of nowhere with some psycho after her and little Adrianne-" Caleb raised his eyebrows.

"My point exactly," he said, disappearing into the kitchen. Aria tapped on the side of her mug with her nails. Keeping the worry out her mind for the past few hours had been exhausting. It hadn't been so bad on the way up from Savannah, the sense of purpose in the journey had somehow kept her positive. It was now, sat passively on Hanna's couch, when the dark thoughts nagged at her brain.

"Why hasn't anybody come after us," Hanna exclaimed suddenly. Aria raised her eyebrows.

"Well I don't know Hanna, but I'm not complaining."

"No but if this is –A again, why wouldn't she be after all of us? Why is somebody after just Spencer?"

"I asked her that," Aria admitted. "But she wouldn't say, because God forbid anybody else but her have to deal with the problem."

"She hasn't changed," Hanna said bitterly, downing her latte. "God, nine days until my wedding and this happens? Typical –A move."

"Yes, because that's the real issue here," Aria replied sarcastically. Before Hanna could open her mouth to retort, Caleb was back in the room.

"Toby's on the phone."

"What's happened," Aria demanded, instantly picking up on the sense of urgency in his voice. He shook his head.

"They've got Spencer."

III

The first thing Spencer was aware of when she awoke was pain. Her head felt like it had been split open with a searing, throbbing ache, and she could feel the ghost of the stranger's hands across her neck. She coughed drily, forcing her eyes open and seeing nothing but darkness. Pushing herself upwards, she sat silently for a minute allowing her eyes to adjust to the low light levels.

Adrianne was a decoy, she realised. Whoever was after them had never intended to use their daughter as a bargaining tool, or even a demonstration of power. The sole aim was getting to Spencer and then the video. She shook her head, wincing slightly at the pain, and attempted to stand up on her wobbly legs. Leaning against the wall unsteadily, she furrowed her brow as shapes began to outline in her vision. She seemed to be in some kind of basement. There was a short set of steps leading up to a trapdoor, but she could see the bolts and padlocks even from where she was stood. Other than that, it was devoid of anything other than a single shelving unit and a pile of old sheets.

Except that wasn't quite true. As her vision homed in on the corner where the sheets were stacked, Spencer could make out a second, smaller shape huddled beside it. The shape of a human. She froze to the spot with fear, images of Toby, Hanna, Aria and Emily's bodies flashing before her eyes in turn. She rushed over to the person, crouching over their prone form. It was a woman. Spencer took in dark curls of hair, high cheekbones and long dark eyelashes.

"Melissa?" she wheezed, her throat screaming in agony as she tried to speak. She desperately shook at her sister's shoulders, begging and pleading with the universe that she woke up. Miraculously, the older woman's eyes were slowly opening, and Melissa squinted at her younger sister.

"Spencer? Oh God he caught up with you afterall."

"He… he what? You have to tell me what's been going on Melissa!" Spencer's words were coming out as croaks; she massaged her throat. Melissa sat up, and reached for what appeared to be a torch concealed beneath the sheets. The circle of orange light revealed a dark bruise across her eye. Spencer swallowed. "Are you hurt?"

"No, no. I mean, technically yes but I'm fine. You look awful, Spencer." Melissa reached up, moving the younger girl's hand away from her neck so she could see the extent of the damage. "I'm so sorry you got caught up in this again. If you just give up Jason's recording everything will go back to the way it was."

Spencer jumped away from her sister's touch like she'd been scalded. "No, Melissa. I've seen them. I know what you did to Jason's Mom."

"I thought I was protecting you, Spencer!" Tears flooded into her eyes. "You have to believe me, I never meant to do it."

"You really thought I killed Ali," she spat bitterly. "You and Mom and Dad just assumed I was killer."

"Spencer, everybody did-"

"Toby didn't." She stalked angrily to the other side of the room, her arms crossed defensively across her chest. "And even if I had it didn't excuse… do you know how screwed up Jason was after that? And Ali and… and CeCe."

"Do you think I don't think about that every day?" Melissa sobbed, stumbling to her feet. "Do you know how sorry I am?"

"So sorry that when you thought you might be found out you chased me and Toby and our baby out of our home, which you then burnt down. You kidnapped Adrianne, probably scared her to death and all to cover your back!"

"Spencer, stop!" Melissa bit her lip nervously. "I was there when… when your apartment was set on fire. But I didn't want to do it, I promise. I had to because they warned me that if I didn't he would send the recording to the police. When I didn't manage to catch up with you, he put me down here as a punishment. I didn't know about any of the other stuff."

"They… who is they?" Melissa shook her head, looking away.

"I can't."

"Melissa!"

"I can't! Look, please Spencer just leave it okay."

"What else is on that tape?" Spencer asked with trepidation. "Something that 'they' have to hide?"

"The recording of me ki… with Mrs DiLaurentis was only how he got me involved. That's not _why_ he wants it back." Melissa's voice dropped to a whisper, she glanced anxiously around. "None of this was my idea, Spencer. I would never want to do anything like that."

"Then help me now," she begged, her voice cracking. "Please."

"Careful Melissa. You don't want to say too much." An all too familiar voice emitted from the top of the stairwell. Spencer spun round, her eyes widening at the figure looking down at the Hastings sisters.

"What are you doing here?"

III

Emily squeezed Toby's shoulder gently as she passed him a cup of tea. "I'm sure it will be fine," she told him softly. "Spencer's been in worse positions than this before, and you know it."

"Really Em?" he replied bitterly. "The last time she went missing she was in an underground bunker for a month, do you think that's what I want to happen again?" She shook her head.

"I'm sorry, Toby. But you found her last time, and we will again."

"I was just so focused on finding Adrianne, I didn't think to just look behind me." His voice broke. Adrianne looked up from across the room where she was playing with Aria's feathered earing.

"Daddy sad?" Aria hugged the girl comfortingly.

"Daddy's just a little bit worried about Mummy," she explained. "So if you could remember anything about the man who wanted to play hide and seek with you that might make him feel a little bit better." The girl's forehead screwed up in concentration, and Aria saw a flash of Spencer in Adrianne's look of focus.

"His face was all covered up," she said slowly. "And he had a funny voice."

"I've tried, Aria," Toby said dejectedly. "She doesn't remember. I think that was the plan all along, when I was focusing on getting her back he knew that he could grab her quickly and quietly."

"Can I have a look at that recording, Toby?" Caleb asked. "And your iPad. I'm going to see if I can find out where Alison called you from."

"In the bag," Toby said dully.

"You don't think... you don't think it's CeCe again do you?" Hanna said quietly. She was met with an uneasy silence as the girls exchanged glances. "I mean, there were four people at your apartment right? Melissa's one, this man's another, that leaves two."

"Ali said she was doing really well," Emily hesitantly responded. "She's still over on the West Coast, I don't think anything could drag her anywhere near Rosewood again."

"Well who else could it be?" Hanna demanded, throwing her arms up dramatically.

"Jenna, Sara, Mona-" Aria listed deliberately. "Look, there's no way we can figure out who's behind this from here, when was the last time any of us spoke to anybody else from Rosewood? We need to focus on finding Spencer. Has anybody even tried calling her?"

"I found her phone on the floor by the motel," Toby sighed. "Look this is hopeless, let's just call the police. I don't care about Alison, Emily," he added at the sight of the girl opening her mouth in protest. "I don't care if it means Ali gets in trouble, I just want Spencer back."

"About Alison," Caleb said grimly, reappearing in the room with Spencer's ipad tucked beneath his arm. "I tracked down where she made the call from."

"Where?" Toby demanded. "Maybe 'he's' got her and Spencer in the same place?"

"I don't think so Toby," he said, sitting down and passing him the tablet. "Look." Toby looked at the map on the grid. It took him a second to figure it out.

"Is this…"

"It's the DiLaurentis house."

Emily struggled to digest the information. "Last I heard she wasn't even in America let alone Rosewood. And I thought you said she looked bad when she called you? You said you thought she was in trouble somewhere?"

"We did," Toby said flatly, looked uneasily at Caleb. A troubled silence settled on the room, broken only by Adrianne's soft hums as the stroked the feather earing up and down her cheek. Toby opened him mouth to speak, only to be interrupted by the simultaneous buzz of the girl's phones. Hanna locked eyes with the man grimly, before glancing down at her cell and reading aloud.

"Home though the heart still calls me, Home through the danger zone, Home whatever befalls me-"

"I will sail again to my own," Aria finished. "It's Henry Van Dyke. A poet," she added at the blonde's blank look.

"Home though the heart still calls me," Toby repeated slowly. "What does this mean?" Emily put down her tea, and sighed.

"We're going back to Rosewood."

 **Thanks for reading!**


	6. Chapter 6

**Only a couple more chapters after this! I'm sure there will be spelling mistakes in this, but I'm honestly so tired no matter how many times I check I think I'll have missed one. Thanks for the reviews of the last chapter, please do keep them coming.**

"Seriously though," Hanna laughed. "Remember 17 year old Spencer and Toby in this truck. Everybody in Rosewood saw it at some point. You're probably sat on sacred ground right now!"

"Hanna, this may not be the time," Caleb warned, his eyes trained on the laptop he'd been studying for the last hour. Emily turned round to look at the blonde.

"At least you didn't walk in on them," she shuddered theatrically. "If there was ever any doubt about my sexuality- well that was gone at the sight of them going at it on Spencer couch." Hanna smiled gratefully at her friend. They both dealt with situations in the same way: with humour. Whilst Aria was staring darkly out the window, probably torturing herself with thoughts of Spencer's whereabouts, the other two girls had spent the last half hour laughing away their concerns.

"Okay seriously Em?" Toby demanded, as Hanna cackled mischievously in the back seat. The five friends were packed into Toby's truck and en route to Rosewood. Aria's small stance allowed room for Caleb, Hanna herself and the sleeping Adrianne to squeeze in the backseat, whilst Emily had won the front seat on ground of self diagnosed 'travel sickness'. Toby was driving, and had remained mostly silent for the duration of the journey, his mind unable to move away from the worry for his girlfriend. "Aria can you check on Adrianne please?"

"Yep, she's fine. Sleeping like a baby." Aria touched the toddler's hair affectionately. "She seems to be taking this in her stride, doesn't she?"

"She's a good kid," Caleb said. "Not that you and Spencer could ever raise anything but."

"I can't believe she already counts in French," Hanna grumbled. "Seriously, I managed that in like tenth grade."

"I really hope this hasn't screwed her up too much," Toby muttered quietly, so softly that only Emily could hear him. She touched his forearm gently.

"None of this is your fault," she promised him. "You're the best Dad I've ever seen, Toby."

"Guys, I've got to the bit with Melissa and Mrs DiLaurentis. Do you… do you want to watch it?" Caleb had been studying the footage since before they decided to leave their New York flat, but like Spencer was yet to see anything new or useful.

"Yes." "No," Hanna and Aria said simultaneously. The former sighed exaggeratedly. "Come on Aria. We need to know what we're dealing with. There might be something in there we can use as a clue."

"You watch it, I'm not. She was our best friend's Mom, Hanna."

"Whatever," the blonde muttered, taking a headphone from her fiancé and watching the footage in silence, wincing as she watched the older Hastings girl literally squeezing the life from Jessica DiLaurentis. "I can't believe it. I mean it's one thing to bury somebody that's already dead, but to actually…"

"But who filmed it," Caleb breathed. "Because that could be who we're really dealing with." Aria felt Adrianne stirring against her.

"Mommy?"

"Hey, Ady," the petite girl whispered, smoothing her niece's curls from her eyes. "It's Auntie Aria!" The child's face crumpled.

"I want to know where Mommy is," she wailed as Aria leant across to comfort her. Hanna leaned into Caleb.

"So do I," she sighed.

"Woah," he uttered, turning the screen away from Adrianne. Hanna leant further across.

"It's Melissa," she murmured. The brunette was laughing, half-heartedly batting at the camera.

"You're turning into Ian," she giggled to the camera man. "What is it with all the men I knows obsession with filming me?"

"For once, Ian had the right idea." Hanna gasped, jumping back so the headphone fell out of her ear.

"Oh my God," she choked. That voice, that unmistakable accent. _A man with a funny voice_ Adrianne had described. "Wren."

"What?" Aria spun round, Ady still weeping softly in her arms. Emily too twisted her head round to look at Hanna and Caleb, her jaw slack in surprise.

"It-it's Wren. He's the one who's filming." Toby grip tightening on the steering wheel, his knuckles a painful white colour, but his eyes remained fixed on the road. He couldn't lose it in front of his daughter.

"So Wren's the one who's got Spencer?" Emily wondered. "But why?"

"He's always wanted her," Toby said between gritted teeth. "The minute I turned my back from her, he'd always be there. He used to… to watch us together." He shuddered.

"But it's a pretty big step to go from watching to taking," Aria said. Caleb's eyes remained trained on the screen.

"He's filmed himself setting up cameras all over town," the man said slowly. "There's one at Rosewood high, one in church, one in… Spencer's room," he finished uneasily.

"Toby I think we should pull over," Emily said quickly, picking up on Toby's growing anger. The man shook his head, his foot nudging against the accelerator.

"I need to get to her quickly, Em. Who knows what he could do to her."

III

The two Hastings women looked up at the blonde girl standing at the top of the staircase. Spencer swallowed, taking a tentative step towards the steps. "Alison? I thought you were… are you…" The girl smirked.

"You weren't really fooled by that call were you, Spencer? I barely had to act at all."

"You made it up then?" Spencer expressed incredulously. Alison raised an eyebrow. "You made me take my three year old away from our apartment and… and uproot her across state away from some imaginary threat? Is this some kind of sick game to you?" Her voice was rising, her eyes blazing with angry tears.

"This isn't a game Spencer," Ali warned. "I needed to figure out where you were, so I called you and while we talked I had somebody tracking your location. I would have been happy to just break in and take the tapes, but somebody wanted some revenge." Spencer's head whipped round to look at her sister, her lip curling in disgust.

"Melissa?" The older sibling shook her head, fixing her with pleading eyes.

"Don't let's come onto your morals Melissa," scorned Alison. "But no, it wasn't her _this_ time."

"CeCe," Spencer breathed, glancing up at the trapdoor, almost expecting the older DiLaurentis to appear. Ali sighed exaggeratedly, walking down the staircase.

"Having a kid sure made you thick, Spencer. CeCe never really made any sense, did she? Sure, her being –A may have been easy and painless for you to believe, but you never actually stopped and thought about it?" At the mention of her child, fresh anger flushed across Spencer's body. She stared coolly at the girl before her.

"You took Adrianne."

"I _borrowed_ Adrianne." The blonde's bored tone only fuelled her fury, and she lunged forward, pushing her out the way and racing up the stairs. Ali gasped, falling sideways onto a bookshelf and was left sprawling. Her heart pumping painfully against her ribcage, Spencer stumbled up the staircase and practically fell out of the trapdoor. She immediately recognised the room as one in the DiLaurentis household. She was mere metres away from her own family home. Her parents could be just across the lawn. Pushing herself up, she sprinted towards the front door and wrenched it open, only to be met with a larger figure.

"Spencer! I was just on my way to see you." Spencer froze, her skin crawling at the sound of the familiar English accent. The man stepped forward, fastening a tight fist around her wrist and, before she had time to react, pulling her back into the living room.

"Wren," she wheezed, trying with all her strength to break free from his clutches. "Wren please, what are you doing?" The two women appeared from the basement, a thin trickle of blood coming from the corner of Ali's mouth.

"Wren," she said breathily. "It was all… under control."

"Clearly," he intoned, shoving Spencer down onto the sofa and casually sliding a small gun from his pocket. He pointed it at her playfully, before returning it to his side. "Enough running, Spencer. The tapes."

"I don't have them!" she protested, her eyes wild with fear. "They're back in that motel you got me from. Whichever of these two you charged with kidnapping me didn't do a very thorough job."

"Careful, Spencer," Melissa whispered, flinching as her former fiancé glanced in her direction. Wren laughed.

"No matter," the gun was out again. He traced it along her jaw and it snaked slowly around her ear. "Because we'll just kill you, and everybody else who you could have shown it to. Toby. Hanna and Caleb. Adrianne." Her breath hitched as his other hand massaged through her long, brunette locks.

"I'll destroy it," she promised shakily. "It will never get out, just leave Toby and Ady alone." He clearly wasn't listening, his thumb tracing the area of skin the gun had just left.

"Why you would chose the carpenter over be, Miss Hastings, I will never understand."

"Is that what this has all been about?" she rasped, too scared to move away from his touch. "Revenge? For Toby?"

"Mona gave me the idea," he whispered. "Talking to her in Radley, listening to everything she'd done to you all was… fascinating. Ian was a sort of muse as well, his thing with the cameras was… inspired. How else did you think I could always be one more step ahead of you and you're little gang? Granted, this whole thing started with you but it became so, so much more."

"So it was you the entire time." Spencer's mind was racing, barely aware of the cold press of metal against her temple. "And CeCe? Was she the fourth person in my apartment?"

"Yes, CeCe fitted the –A profile well didn't she? I knew she would. It had to be somebody that none of you would ever question." Her mind flickered back to images of CeCe on the roof, the desperate madness in her eyes. She pictured her sat in one of the beds at Radley, perhaps the same bed she'd sat in. Then, she imagined Dr. Wren Kingston walking through the halls of the institution in a crisp, white coat.

"She was your patient at Radley," Spencer intoned slowly and deliberately. "She was mentally unwell, so vulnerable that you could persuade her to own up to it all?"

"Very good," the Briton drawled. "I knew you'd be the one to work it out." He pulled back the hammer of the gun.

"That's sick," she spat, flinching away from his hand. "She's your patient, you completely abused your position. You made her believe that… what that she hated us? That we were against her? Was she even your sister, Ali?"

"She was born my brother, but yes she was," Alison said, moving to stand beside the doctor. Melissa remained hovering in the background, clearly less involved in the scheming than the other two.

"So, did CeCe try to drown you as a baby? Or was it all a lie?"

"CeCe, or Charles as she then was, ran away when I was almost too young to remember her. She'd had enough of my transphobic father and my powerless Mom. I never heard from her again, until she tried to kill me in my backyard. That part was true. But she never sent a single –A text in her life."

"And she was the perfect scapegoat," Wren finished in a satisfied tone. "Three, four counselling sessions and she was convinced that Alison and you four girls were the reason she was in Radley."

"But why?" Spencer felt like crying. All she had been sure about for the last six years, her safety net of knowledge and understanding, was ripped from beneath her feet. "You broke me and Toby up. You sent me to Radley. Why did you carry on? And you!" she turned to Alison. "Why would you get involved?"

"Wren promised me I could see my sister again," Alison said simply. "But after a while… I enjoyed it. I liked watching you all get hurt, and scared. It's how I got to my position of power at high school, so I figured I could use it from 'beyond the grave'. And then after a while, it was fun. It was fun watching you in Radley, causing harm is addictive. You know all about addiction right, Spence?"

"And why now?" Spencer asked, desperately seeking time to avoid the inevitable conclusion of this conversation. The conclusion directly relating to the weapon pressed against her skull. "It's been years, and we've heard nothing. Why did you want the tape back all of a sudden?"

"I'm bored now," Wren sighed, dropping to his knees in front of the girl and stroking a finger gently along the trigger of the gun. "And if you don't have the tapes, and you know everything I just don't see the point in keeping you alive."

"I'm sorry!" The words tumbled from her lips as she clutched desperately at the air. "I'm sorry I chose Toby over you! I'm sorry you feel like I abandoned you! Just… just please don't let Adrianne grow up without a mother like Toby had to!"

"Wren," Melissa whispered. "Wren you don't have to-" He laughed, a horrible, deranged laugh Spencer had never heard before.

"Oh but Melissa, I do."

 **Cliffhanger! Next instalment coming soon!**


	7. Chapter 7

**This chapter is so dramatic! Its kind of dialogue heavy because of that, sorry if this isn't your thing. Nearly finished this story now ahhh! Thanks for reviewing everybody :)**

The truck screeched to a halt outside the Hastings mansion. Toby leapt from the driver's seat, wrenching open the door and grabbing Adrianne into his arms.

"We know Wren has Spencer," Caleb said, jumping out the truck. "I just watched hours of counselling footage between him and CeCe. He was relaying the –A thing to her again and again, what she told you at prom? But in the earlier sessions she didn't seem to believe it."

"What does that mean?" Emily demanded. Caleb ran his tongue over his teeth.

"It means… or I think it means that CeCe was never –A. But Wren made her believe she was."

"Look, let's leave the mystery solving to later," Hanna snapped. "Where's our best bet to find Spencer?" Toby threw his hands in the air and stalked behind the van. He had no idea of the best course of action. All he knew was that he had to see her again. He felt his phone vibrate in his pocket, and absentmindedly glanced at it. His blood ran cold.

"Hanna," he called. "Hanna!" The blonde appeared round the side of the van. He thrust the phone before her; her eyes widened. The message was from an unknown number, and was just a photo. Spencer was slumped in the sofa, her dark eyes filled with tears of fright and fixed on the figure who was crouched before her. The figure who was also wielding a gun. Emily and Aria appeared behind them, the latter clapping a hand over her mouth at the sight of the photo.

"Oh my God, Wren." she breathed.

"Ali's house," Emily snapped. Toby glanced at her wordlessly. She sighed. "Look I recognise the curtains. It's the DiLaurentis house."

"Let's go," he said shortly, passing his daughter into Aria's arms. "Ady, Aunty Aria's taking you to see Grandpa and Grandma. I'll see you really, really soon. Daddy just needs to sort something else first." Aria squeezed Adrianne to her side, smiling falsely.

"We'll have so much fun! Look Toby, please be careful. And please call me the second it's over."

"Promise," Emily said, hugging her tiny friend. Hanna nodded tersely.

"We'll be fine Aria." Aria sighed deeply before walking down the drive towards Spencer's old home. Toby watched his daughter move further down the driveway for a few seconds, before turning back to his friends.

"Let's go."

"Woah," Caleb grabbed hold of Toby's arm. "You're just gonna charge in there and talk Spencer out of gunpoint? Is that the plan?"

"I'm going to go through the front door on my own. You three are coming through from the back, surprising him. We'll save Spencer, overpower Wren and get the hell out of Rosewood."

III

This was it. There was no escape, no way out of this dire, dire situation. A whimper slipped from Spencer's parted lips as the cool metal of the gun caressed the side of her head. She could feel Wren's breath on her face. It made her shudder. Melissa's soft sobs drifted across the room, but the elder sibling made no move to save the younger. She felt his fingers raking through her hair, almost tenderly.

"You should have chosen me," he murmured. "Whilst you had the chance." At his words, something inside Spencer snapped. Her eyes flew open, her weak terror transforming into rage. She shrieked, flinging herself up from the seat and pushing Wren aside. He stumbled slightly, and she seized her opportunity, tearing across the room and attempting to wrench the front door open. Her fingers fumbled shakily at the handle; she could hear him approaching quickly behind her. Crying out in frustration, she finally threw the door open and exclaimed. There, framed in the doorway, was Toby. She slumped in relief.

"Spencer!"

"Tob-" Her eyes widened as she felt strong arms wrap round her waist from behind and pull her back into the house. He sprinted after them without a second thought for his safety, and recoiled at the sight of Alison and Melissa in the room. The former folded her arms defiantly as she looked him up and down, whereas the older woman kept her eyes trained shamefully on the floor. Wren was stood with his back to the door on the other side of the room, each of his accomplices beside him. One arm was fastening across Spencer's torso, trapping her against his body, the other supported the gun rammed against her head. She scratched desperately against his arm, but to no avail. He was too strong. "Toby!"

"Let her go Wren," he shouted, stepping towards them. The gun flickered momentarily in his direction, stopping him in his tracks, before returning to Spencer's head.

"I'd stay where you are if I were you, carpenter," the man whispered. Toby nodded furiously, raising his hands in surrender.

"I will Wren just please… please let Spencer go." He reached inside his pocket a held up the disc labelled 'NAT'. His hands steady, he reached out proffering it to the man. "You can have the footage. I don't care anymore." Alison jumped forward, snatching it from him and passing it to her leader. He grinned.

"You're weak. You gave in so easily."

"Now you let Spencer go," Toby responded. He stared into Spencer's eyes, silently promising her it would all be alright. She barely dared to breath, let alone talk.

"I don't remember making that promise," Wren said slowly. He turned to Alison. "Do you remember me making that promise?" His playful expression was not mirrored on the girl, whose fingers were twitching with anxiety.

"We've got it, Wren let's just get out of here. Kill her or don't kill her I don't care. Come on. Please." He groaned.

"Fine." He twisted Spencer round in his arms so her face was mere inches away from his. "It's been nice to play this game with you, Spencer." He threw her backwards violently, and she was sent tumbling into Toby's arms. Relieved, he crushed her into a tight embrace, one hand cupping the back of her head as he rocked her gently in his arms.

"You're okay, we're okay," he whispered to her. Spencer turned to face the trio, still clutching to Toby.

"Melissa you don't have to choose their side," she said hoarsely, desperately. "You can still back out."

"You know I was going to just let you walk away! But now…" Wren exclaimed, pointing the gun directly at the couple. Toby started and took Spencer by the shoulders, trying to place himself between her and the weapon. She resisted, instead stretching her arm in front of his torso as if her slender form would somehow protect him from a bullet. "She could see the insanity in his eyes, and she knew he would never have been able to bear to let them go.

"Toby," she whispered. "Toby I'm sorry. I really love you." He leant down, touching her hair away from her ear and whispered, his cool breath against her ear sending shivers down her spine.

"It's going to be okay."

III

"I don't like this," Emily said uneasily, craning her neck behind her to see Toby waiting patiently by the truck. "He shouldn't go in there on his own. Wren has a gun."

"Toby will be fine," Hanna stated, grabbing her friends hand and pulling her through the trees towards the back of the DiLaurentis property. "And so will Spencer and me and you and Aria. And we're all going back to New York in time for our wedding."

"Okay, quiet now," Caleb said, his voice lowering to a whisper. The house was in sight now. All the rooms were darkened, except for the room at the front of the house. The room Spencer was in. Her heart in her mouth, Hanna quickly crossed over the lawn and pressed herself against the backdoor. She turned to Caleb.

"You know how to break in right?"

"Obviously." He shouldered gently past her, and began picking the lock. Emily touched Hanna on the shoulder.

"Look don't say anything, but I bought this." She extracted a slim pistol from her hoodie pocket. Hanna's eyes widened.

"Em!"

"It's my Dads," she replied defensively. "When you told me what we could be dealing with, I figured it would be better to be safe than sorry." Hanna opened her mouth to retort, but the darker girl stopped her. "I said don't say anything."

"Fine!" she threw her arms in the air and turned back to her fiancé. "Can you hurry up?" He grunted, the door clicking open and the trio tumbling into the kitchen. Blinking owlishly in the dark room, Hanna turned back to Emily. "Okay do you remember how to get to the front room?"

"Oh I don't think you'll be getting that far." The light in the room snapped on, glaringly bright, to reveal Sara Harvey. Hanna looked at her accusingly.

"You're meant to be in hospital."

"Yeah well it's not Radley. They try to 'treat us right' over there so security is lax! Hi Emily," she said waving sarcastically. "How come you never called?"

"Yeah whatever," Caleb dismissed. "Now excuse us we need to get past." The girl raised an eyebrow.

"I'm not gonna let you do that," she warned, grabbing a knife from the side and casually holding it up. Emily flinched, holding up her own weapon to her former lover. Caleb looked warily from one girl to the other.

"Okay let's just stop."

"Screw that," Hanna muttered, snatching the gun from Emily and, in one swift motion, knocking Sarah's weapon from her hand. The blonde gasped, but had no time to react before Hanna pushed her against the kitchen counter and held her there. "You too go. I'll hold her here." She threw the pistol back to Emily. "Go!" Caleb nodded, planting a kiss on his fiancé's cheek, and leading the way through the door. Finding themselves at the foot of the stairs, the pair quickly saw the line of light beneath the door.

"They're in there," Emily murmured. Sharing a quick look with her friend's fiancé, she crouched at the door and slowly, silently pushed it open. "There's Toby and Spencer." Caleb knelt beside her, peering through the small gap between the frame and the door.

"And Wren." His eyes scanned over the scene. Spencer and Toby were clinging to each other, and Wren was stood between two women. One he immediately recognised as Melissa Hastings, and the other…

"Alison?" Caleb could hear the break in the girl's voice, he touched her shoulder comfortingly. Emily bit back a sob, and let out a rattling breath. "I don't understand, why… why would she?"

"So many people died in this house. Why not make it two more?" Wren's threat broke the silence between the pair, and Emily's vision clouded in anger. Spencer was frozen in panic, whispering something in her boyfriend's ear. Toby, however, seemed to be looking past the man holding the gun and, indeed directly at the door she was cowering behind. A hint of a hope seemed to pass over his face, and he murmured something back in her eyes. Taking this as her cue, Emily burst through the door her weapon held aloft.

"Everybody stop!" she yelled. Alison turned, her slightly widening eyes the only betrayal of her surprise. The darker girl pointed the gun at the blonde, before training it to the doctor. "Put down the gun, Wren." Spencer saw his focus shift from her and Toby to their two friends in the doorway, and she snatched the opportunity. Darting forward, she grabbed hold of Wren's arm and twisted it mercilessly. With a cry, the gun clattered to the floor. Throwing her off him and nursing his injured wrist, Wren fixed Spencer with eyes filled with rage.

"You..." He lunged forward, clearly intent on causing serious damage to the slender brunette, but Toby got there first. His fist connected with the Briton's skull with a sickening crunch and Wren crumpled to the floor, unconscious. Emily stepped over his prone form, training her father's weapon at the two girls.

"Go and sit on the couch," she yelled, a slight tremor in her voice. Alison's lip curled, but she did as she was told and Melissa followed. "Caleb call 911." The boy obeyed wordlessly, taking a step back to use his cell.

"Is everybody ok?" Hanna burst into the room, her fingers tight around Sarah's forearm.

"We're fine, Han," Spencer rasped, her arm snaking around her boyfriend's waist.

"Oh thank God, Spence we found you." Spencer smiled weakly, tilting her chin up to look her boyfriend deeply in the eyes.

"You did." He mirrored her expression, his hands falling from her shoulders to her waist as he leant into her gentle kiss. She wrapped her arms around his neck and raked her fingers through his thick hair, reassuring herself that he was real. They were together again. And she loved him so much. They withdrew from the kiss, and Toby looked down at her lovingly as he drank in her beauty.

"Spencer I-" The silence was shattered with a shot, and a scream. Toby flung himself in front of his girlfriend, sending them both flailing to the ground. Emily looked wildly around to locate the source of the shot. Wren. He'd regained consciousness and had the abandoned gun clasped between his fingers, and was raising his arm to shoot again. She didn't think twice.

Emily pointed to gun at his head, and pulled the trigger. Silence.

Hanna looked across at her friend. Emily touched a spot of blood on her forehead, and the pistol slipped from her trembling hands. Her eyes flooded with tears, and she swayed slightly as if about the collapse in shock. Caleb was at her side in an instant, prising the weapon from her and guiding her to a seat. "Is everybody okay?"

Spencer sat up, adrenalin pumping through her veins and making her heart beat dizzyingly fast. "Tobes? I think you just saved my life, babe." She crawled over to her boyfriend who was still sprawled out on the floor, probably in shock. She touched his shoulder, causing his arm to fall slack and reveal a dark, growing stain of red against his side. She screamed in anguish. "Toby!"

"We need an ambulance!" Caleb was yelling down the phone. Hanna flew to her side and grabbed her by the shoulders, holding her up. Spencer could hear her shouting but her words didn't register. She shrieked again, pushing her hands desperately against the wound in attempt to stop the blood loss.

"Toby, no please!" His eyes were sliding shut, his face blanching. Blood was leaking through the gaps between her fingers. Her screams dissolving into gut wrenching cries, she fell forward onto him. "Toby!"


	8. Chapter 8

**Thanks for all the reviews guys! Only one more chapter after this. You're all the best!**

Spencer had been frozen in the same position for what had felt like an eternity. She was sat, her shoulders tensed and her hands clasped together, staring at the white hospital floor. A thin crust of blood lined the edges of her nails. She clenched her hands into fists to hide them, bile rising in her throat. She felt too numb to cry, or scream in frustration. It was as if any release of emotion, any movement in fact would simply cause her to fall apart completely. And she couldn't let that happen.

"No news," Hanna sighed, sitting beside her friend and wrapping her arms tightly around the brunette's shoulders and planted a kiss on top of her head. Toby had been rushed into emergency surgery nearly four hours ago, leaving his girlfriend no time to say goodbye, before he was rushed away. Aria appeared at Spencer's other side, resting a comforting hand on her thigh.

"I bought you this," she said pressing a cardboard drinks cup into Spencer's hand. "It's not coffee, its tea with sugar. For the shock." Slowly, the girl seemed to ease from her state of stasis and reached out for the steaming cup. Sipping it gingerly, she looked around the room for the first time.

"I-is Emily ok?" she stammered, failing to locate the girl.

"She's talking to a cop still," Hanna said quietly. "But they know it was self-defence, us or them."

"They're just trying to figure out what happened," Aria assured her. "I told them we weren't ready to talk to them yet."

"Thanks." Spencer attempted to smile, but failed miserably, instead throwing her face into her hands. "If I hadn't got myself kidnapped Toby wouldn't have been in that house when that gun went off."

"Don't think like that," Hanna snapped. "It's useless, Spence it doesn't help Toby and makes you feel worse."

"I do know how you feel," Aria took Spencer's hand in her tiny one. "Remember New York?" Spencer inhaled deeply, rubbing her eyes.

"I do. I'm sorry."

"Spencer?" Veronica Hastings ran over to her youngest daughter, gathering the girl into her arms. "I'm so sorry." Peter was a mere few steps behind her, his granddaughter clinging to his hand.

"Ady!" Spencer broke from her mother's embrace and opened her arms so her daughter could leap into them. The girl wrapped her arms almost painfully tight around Spencer's neck, climbing onto her lap. She rocked the three year old gently.

"Daddy sick?" she questioned. Spencer nodded tightly.

"Yeah, Daddy's sick."

"He get better?" A lump formed in her throat, she couldn't voice the correct answer. Instead, she held her daughter tighter, brushing her curls from her forehead.

"Darling, what happened?" Veronica asked gently.

"Wren," Hanna answered quickly, seeing her friend was in no state to talk about the last couple of days events. "Alison and… and Melissa."

"Melissa?" Peter said incredulously. Aria could see Spencer getting smaller and smaller, her grip on Adrianne weakening.

"We'll explain," she promised the older couple. "Just later."

"But-"

"Melissa's safe," Hanna promised. "She's being treated for shock. She might need a lawyer later. But right now, Spencer needs you more."

"Who's here for Toby Cavanaugh?" The nurse barked from the other side of the room, thankfully breaking apart the tension from the blonde' outburst. Startled, Spencer wordlessly slid her daughter from her lap into her grandfather's arms and hurried to meet the woman with Hanna and Aria hot on her heels. "You family? All of you?"

"I'm his girlfriend," Spencer replied quickly. "And-"

"And we're his sisters," Hanna finished. "Half-sisters," she added at the nurse's sceptical look.

"Well Mr Cavanaugh survived the surgery," she said. Spencer cried out in relief, her knees almost buckling beneath her. She felt somebody grab her by the waist, Hanna or Aria she had no idea, and she fixed the nurse with thankful eyes. "I'm not going to lie to you, it was touch and go at some points. We lost him twice, but he pulled through. He's strong. I wouldn't go as far to say he's stable, but his doctor's no longer regarding him as critical."

The information swam round meaninglessly in her brain; she voiced the only question she really needed to know. "He's going to be ok?" she cried, her voice surprisingly steady. The nurse smiled a little.

"We don't like to promise anything. But if he continues to show the progress he did in the surgery, he should be out here by the end of the week." Spencer let out a sob, and collapsed into Hanna's tight embrace. All the pain, anguish and worry she'd been holding in for the last four hours flooded from her body in tears of relief. _He was going to be okay._ Adrianne wasn't going to grow up fatherless, she was condemned to live in a world without him. It was all going to be all right.

"Can Spencer go and see him?" Aria asked hopefully.

"The doctor would like you to," the nurse said. "He's awake, but most likely very delirious. I'll get my colleague to show you to his room." Spencer eagerly followed the younger nurse, with Hanna in tow. The nurse caught hold of Aria's arm, pulling her behind her friends.

"I found something in your brother's jacket," she whispered. "Did he tell you his… plans with his girlfriend?"

"Uh, no," Aria said cautiously. The nurse carefully removed a tiny jewellery box from her scrubs and handed it to the brunette. It was the perfect size for a ring. Aria gasped, clapping her hands over her mouth. "I'll look after it. Thank you."

III

Spencer hovered cautiously by the door, peering inside at her boyfriend lying peacefully on the bed. His face, although pale and tired, was unmistakably him and irrevocably beautiful. The tubes that covered his arms and stretched across his chest frightened her slightly, but she forced herself to look beyond that and at the man she loved. He shifted slightly, his eyes flickering open, and she took that as her cue to enter the room. Crossing to his bed and kneeling beside it, she touched his arm gently.

"Tobes?" His head twisted to look at her.

"Spencer." His voice came out as a dull rasp. She laughed in relief, her hand moving to his forehead to scrape his hair up from his face.

"Toby you're ok. I'm so glad you're ok." She leant across the bed and kissed his lips tenderly. "I'm so sorry, this is all my fault Toby. If I hadn't believed Ali's bullshit we'd still be at home and you wouldn't be in this hospital and-"

"Spence, stop," he interrupted hoarsely. "I'm fine." Her eyes skimmed down his body to his heavily bandaged side where to the bullet had gone. She swallowed, tears prickling on the end of her eyelashes and she stood up to examine him properly.

"I thought I was going to lose you," she whispered. He reached out clumsily, touching her hip and stroking up and down her side.

"Better luck next time," he teased lightly.

"Don't joke," she replied quickly, resting her hand on top of his. "Just… just not yet." She bent down again, kissing him deeply. He felt a tear drop from her face onto his, and his hand moved to the back of her head.

"Love you Spence."

"I love you, Toby."

"Knock knock!" Hanna appeared at the door, with Adrianne sat on her hip. "There's somebody here to see you Daddy." Toby craned, trying to sit up in bed and panting with the effort.

"Hi Ady!"

"Daddy?" The girl hung back, cautiously, obviously intimidated by the bleeping machines. Spencer crossed over to her friend, taking her daughter into her arms and walking her over to the side of the bed.

"Daddy's fine," she said. Toby smiled, taking his daughters hand a planting a kiss in her tiny palm before bunching her fingers into a fist. She giggled a little, smacking a kiss on her other hand and wiping it on his face.

"Why he plugged in?"

"This one is to listen to my heart go bu-boom," Toby said. "This one is so the doctor can give me my medicine without my having to go 'aaahhh' all the time." He mouthed opening his mouth and Ady chuckled quietly. "And this one… is to give Daddy some extra blood because some got out when he got hurt." Adrianne looked around keenly.

"Wow!" she exclaimed. Hanna smiled from the doorway.

"She could be a doctor when she grows up, Spence."

"You can come all the way in, Han," Toby told her from his prone position. She gratefully entered the room and leant over Toby kissing him on the cheek.

"I'm glad you're okay," she told him. "And that was so cool when you jumped in front of Spencer."

"No it wasn't," Spencer muttered darkly. Adrianne struggled out of her mother's arms and climbed onto the hospital bed, lying alongside her Dad and gently tracing his bandages with her forefinger.

"Look who's joining us?" Aria appeared in the doorway, her arms around Emily. The girl looked visibly shaken, dark circles cut beneath her eyes, but her face was clean of blood. The two girls entered the room, and Spencer wrapped the swimmer into a hug. Aria crossed over to see Toby, and began talking quietly to him.

"Are you ok Em?" she whispered, and felt her friend nod against her.

"I will be." Spencer could feel her heart breaking at the tone of despondency of her friend's voice.

"Look, you didn't have a choice." She took Emily by the shoulders, leaning back to look at her intently. "Honestly Em. If you hadn't… stopped Wren then Toby could be dead. And so could I. So could all of us."

"That's what the police say," she nodded. "They want to talk to us all soon. And they've seen the footage." Spencer pushed thoughts of her sister to the back of her mind, focusing instead on the girl standing helplessly before her.

"None of that matters right now," she said firmly. "As long as we're all ok. And we are. You saved us all."

"Thanks, Spence. I love you."

"Love you too," she sighed, hugging her tightly again.

"You haven't eaten in hours," Hanna announced. "You stay here with Toby, we'll go and get some sandwiches ok?"

"Can you tell my parents we're ok," Spencer said, sitting beside Toby's bed again. "And say Melissa probably needs them more now." Toby rested his hand on her shoulders, and she leaned slightly into him.

"We will." The three girls filed out the room, leaving Spencer, Adrianne and Toby alone in the room.

"Spence? I have something to tell you." Spencer turned, and Toby took her hands in both of his. "I wish I could get down on one knee for this, babe." He picked up a ring box, flipping it open to reveal a simple, yet beautifully elegant engagement ring. She stared at it, then at him, then back at the ring. He bought her hand to his mouth. "Spencer Hastings, I love you more than life itself. I want to be with you forever. Will you marry me?"

A sob escaped Spencer's throat, tears swam in her eyes. A mere half hour ago she wasn't sure if she'd ever see her boyfriend again. Now he was promising her the rest of his life. His life that would stretch indefinitely beyond this day.

"I love you too, Toby. I-"

"Say yes Mommy!" Adrianne yelped, stretching up to grab hold of her parents linked arms. Spencer laughed, stretching out her left hand to Toby.

"Yes, Toby. Yes."


	9. Chapter 9

**This is it guys! Thanks for all your reviews, and massive thanks to those who reviewed every single chapter. It really kept me writing. I might write more spoby in the future, but have to focus on school right now. Love you all heaps!**

The past three days had been a blur for Spencer. Her days had been spent sitting with Toby, looking after Adrianna and speaking to the Rosewood PD about what had happened. Conversations with her high school friends melted away from her memory the second she finished talking to them, she was barely aware of her mother telling her about what was happening to Melissa, Alison and Sarah. She was only focused on him, and getting him better.

But now, a tentative peacefulness had settled upon her fatigued mind. Her fingers were interlocked loosely with Toby, who was in a deep sleep on the hospital bed, and Adrianne too was sleeping on the chair beneath Aria's coat. The other three girls were gathered around the bed. Hanna sat on the arms of Spencer's chair, Aria was crouched beside Adrianne gently smoothing her hair and Emily was sat on the floor her knees curled into her chest. Spencer felt safe in this room. It contained everybody she loved, everyone she cared about.

"What are you smiling at?" Spencer heard Hanna say. She looked down at Emily who was wiping her face of a soft grin and dropping her phone to her lap.

"Uh nothing. Just I started talking to Paige again."

"Ooh," Aria responded teasingly. "Do we think this could…escalate?"

"Potentially." The darker girl blushed, dipping her head and Spencer laughed.

"Bring her to Hanna's wedding," she suggested.

"I think it's a bit early for that," Emily replied, her thumb sliding back and forth along the screen of her phone.

"No, you have to." Hanna slid off the side of the chair and sat beside her friend. "Show her how hot you're going to look in the bridesmaid dress I picked out. Oh my God I can't believe the wedding's in five days!"

"Inside voice, Hanna," Spencer snapped softly glancing first at her daughter and then Toby- neither had stirred. Hanna sighed, swivelling round on her knees and grabbing Spencer's hand to examine her ring. A wicked glint flashed in her eyes, and she quickly raised her own left hand to compare the jewellery. Spencer jerked her hand away, laughing. "Stop!"

"I can't believe he's finally got his act together and asked you," Aria said gleefully. "But I also can't believe that I'm going to be the only one going to your wedding without a date."

"I don't think we'll set the date for quite a while Aria," Spencer said, her eyes sliding down his side and focussing on the wad of bandages taped to his side.

"Yeah they've basically been married since junior year nothing will change," Emily said decisively. A content silence settled across the room and for the first time since the shooting, Spencer let her mind wander freely for a few seconds. She allowed herself to imagine herself on her wedding day, standing beside Toby. Adrianne could be bridesmaid, along with the girls. Her parents would be there, all their friends in New York and Melissa…

"Melissa won't be at my wedding," she said slowly. Emily glanced up at her, resting a reassuring hand on her thigh.

"I'm sorry Spence."

"My parents know there's no hope," she said flatly. "The evidence couldn't be more solid. She won't even get a shorter sentence for pleading guilty because she failed to turn herself in at the time. And part of me feels like that's the way it should be but there's this other part of me th-that doesn't. And then there's this other part of my that feels awful for feeling bad for her when Mrs DiLaurentis was the one who-"

"I know she's family, Spence but Melissa is crazy," Hanna said bluntly. "Maybe she was always going to end up in jail, somehow. And I know it's wrong but this time she thought she was doing it for you. She did love you."

"How much do they have on Alison," Emily asked hesitantly.

"It'll probably go through as something like accomplice to attempted murder with perversion of justice and withholding evidence," Spencer said listlessly. "She'll be out in half the time Melissa will be."

"I still don't understand why she would do it," Aria said.

"Wren told her that he could reunite her with CeCe for good, right?" Emily said. Spencer nodded.

"Yeah but that wasn't her motive by the end. She said she started enjoying the power it gave it."

"There's something else," Hanna said. "I only found out today, but Caleb said there was footage of Ali and Wren… together."

" _Together_ together?" Aria said incredulously as Hanna nodded grimly.

"He always had a thing for younger girls," Spencer said, glancing meaningfully at Hanna who nibbled at her lip thoughtfully.

"Who always had a thing for younger girls?" Toby shifted slightly in the bed. He squinted slightly to look at her and traced his thumb up and down hers.

"Wren," she said, entranced by the sight of her slender fingers entwined into his hand. They fitted together so well, like puzzle pieces. Puzzle pieces that together completed the picture.

"I thought we made a pact?" he said lightly, moving his other hand to rake gently through the waves of her dark hair. "No more Wren talk until we get out of here."

"I didn't realise that counted when only one of us was conscious." She leant forward to kiss him, and his hand fell from her hair to her waist. Her heart surged with love and gratitude. And relief. It could have so easily ended differently. She could be planning her outfit for his funeral rather than her best friend's wedding.

"Are you excited to go home tomorrow?" Emily asked. "Spencer's Mom came over with some fresh clothes to change into."

"I can't wait to see anything other than the inside of this room," he said honestly. "And I can't wait for this one to wait on me hand and foot." Spencer raised an eyebrow.

"Enjoy it while it lasts," she muttered darkly.

"Yes but don't do too much Toby because I'm not having you pulling a sickie on my wedding day," Hanna added.

"Han he literally took a bullet," Aria chastised.

"I wouldn't miss it for the world," Toby said, without a hint of irony in his voice. Spencer leant forward to kiss him briefly again, before she leant into his ear to whisper. Her hair fell in front of his face like a shield.

"We're never going to miss anything again," she murmured, kissing his ear lobe. "No more mystery solving, or –A hunting getting in the way of our lives. Just me and you and Adrianne." Toby smiled, tucking her hair behind her ear and leaning forward to whisper back. His breath caressed the tender flesh of her neck.

"That sounds perfect."

*18 months later*

"Mommy can I take baby Lexi to see the gardens?" Spencer tore her eyes from those of her husband- her _husband_ to look down at her four year old daughter.

"Ask Aunty Hanna, Ady. Why do you want to see the gardens?"

"The statues are from England and were made in the 1840s," the girl replied sincerely, before skipping off to find Hanna. Toby chuckled.

"Trust our daughter to interrupt our first dance as a married couple." His hands returned to her waist and his head dipped forward to kiss her deeply. She curved her body closer to his, her arms hanging over his shoulders.

"And to know about garden artwork from the Victorian period," she added, leaning back from the embrace and looking back into his eyes. His face was lit and shadowed by the warm, glowing lights of the venue and his eyes were sparkling with life and love. "Today has been…" she paused, searching for the word. He cut her off.

"Why not try not analysing everything for once and just…just be?" His lips traced along her neck, and she shivered slightly.

"I'll try," she rasped softly, a smile dancing across her lips. "But I won't promise anything."

Emily leant against the side of the dance floor, watching as Toby whispered in Spencer's ear. She felt light, lighter than she'd felt for years as she watched her two friends together. Somebody brushed against her side, and she looked up to see Paige.

"Spying on the happy couple?"

"I just can't believe how blissful they are," she stated emphatically. "After everything they've both been through."

"Kind of gives us some hope, right?" Emily smiled, hooked her arm around her girlfriend's waist and pulling her into a kiss. As the song faded, she withdrew from the embrace, her fingers brushing through Paige's brown hair.

"Spencer's wrong about hope. It doesn't breed misery, it destroys it."

"I'm so glad you two are back together!" Hanna burst in on the happy moment, her six month old daughter Alexis in her arms. The girl had Hanna's characteristic blonde hair, but the more tanned skin and darker eyes of Caleb. Paige bent down, cooing at the girl. "And have you seen Aria? She and her new publishing boyfriend look so cute together."

"It's all sort of coming together isn't it," Paige said. "Seeing you four girls and being with Emily feels like we're back at high school but without the –A thing."

"Oh," Emily exclaimed, as the next song began to play, opening with a grungy guitar. "Spencer loves this song."

 _First you look so strong/ Then you fade away_

Spencer cupped Toby's face in her hands, they stopped swaying for a moment. All of a sudden, she felt overcome with emotion, memories of him lying in that hospital bed at the forefront of her mind. For so long she had defined strength as being self-sufficient, independent. Surviving on your own without talking to anybody else. Now she knew different. Strength was being able to lean on Toby and let Toby lean on her, like a counter balance. "I love you, Toby Cavanaugh."

"I love you, Spencer Cavanaugh," he echoed. "I always will."

 _The sun will blind my eyes/ I will love you anyway_

"Come on," Emily took Paige's hand and dragged her to the dance floor. "Let's dance." Paige's hand slipped into Emily's, and the other rested on her waist.

"I'm glad we're back together too," she murmured.

 _First you form a smile/ I watch you for a while_

Hanna leant against Caleb as they sat watching their friends dance, their baby on her lap. "I don't want anything to change," she said, her voice muffled in his jacket. "I want Alexis and Adrianne to always be able to see each other and I want to see the girls all the time. I don't want Spencer and Toby to have to live in Philadelphia."

"Well they can't afford New York any more, and I think they're growing out of the Hastings barn," Caleb reasoned.

"Adrianne loves Lexi so much," Hanna wined. "And Ady's such a smart kid, it might rub off on Lexi. We could have a genius as a baby if we live closer to Spencer and Toby."

"Then why don't we just move to Philly," he intoned. "Now Aria's back in Rosewood you girls would all be together. New York has been fun, but perhaps it's time to put this one first." He gestured to the child on their laps. She straightened up.

"Really?"

"Why not?" She kissed him, her eyes shining in excitement.

"I can't wait to tell Adrianne."

 _You are a vapour trail/ In the deep blue sky_

"I'm looking forward to our honeymoon," Spencer said as they swayed in time to the music. "But I really can't wait to move into the bigger flat and live as our family again. Staying in my Mom's barn has been nice but now-"

"There's just no room for four." They glanced down at Spencer's now flat stomach, and a grin tugged at the corners of Toby's mouth.

"7 and a half a months and Adrianne's gonna have a little brother or sister," she whispered. His hand brushed over her abdomen before settling on her back, pulling her into him. As he held her their future stretching before them. Spencer smiled idyllically.

"I can't wait."

 _And all my time/ Is yours as much as mine/ We never have enough/ Time to show our love._


End file.
